Buswell Bulletin: Journal Articles – March 2022

Buswell Bulletin

Mar 28

Covenant’s librarians keep an eye on the new journal issues coming into the library and then each month we highlight recent articles and reviews that strike us as interesting and/or important to the scholarly conversation. (Inclusion on this list is not an endorsement.)

Linked items marked “Open Access” are accessible to anyone. Otherwise, a Covenant library account may be required for access. Alumni may access items marked “Alumni Access Available” by visiting the Alumni Portal and selecting the identified resource on the library resources page.

Doing Torah, Imitating Yahweh: A Reconsideration of the Good Samaritan Story

Susan J. Wendel
The Expository Times 133, no. 3 (December 2021): 105–16

Abstract:

Scholars often puzzle over why the discussion about Torah obedience in Luke 10:25–29 does not appear to fit coherently with the story of the Good Samaritan that follows it (10:30–37). Was this an oversight on Luke’s part, a lack of editorial finesse, or did he have other aims? In this paper, I will argue that the apparent shift in logic, marked by the transformation of the lawyer’s question from ‘Who is my neighbour?’ (10:29) to ‘Who acts as a neighbour?’ (10:36), invites the lawyer to realign his interpretation of Lev 19:18 with the theology of imitatio Dei already present in Leviticus 19: The one who properly fulfills Lev 19:18 does so by imitating Yahweh. Within the context of Luke’s Gospel, moreover, Luke 10:25–37 illustrates how Luke both affirms and expands the terms of Torah obedience such that proper fulfilment of the Mosaic Law requires a disclosure of and participation in the very nature of God.

Alumni Access Available: SAGE Journals

The Setting of the Assassination of King Joash of Judah: Biblical and Archaeological Evidence for Identifying the House of Millo

Chris McKinny, Aharon Tavger, Nahshon Szanton, and Joe Uziel
Journal of Biblical Literature 140, no. 4 (2021): 643–62

Abstract:

The identification of the biblical מלוא (millô˒; Millo) in Jerusalem (e.g., 2 Sam 5:9) has long been debated. Considering recent archaeological investigations in the vicinity of the Gihon Spring in the city of David, this paper argues that the Millo and the related בית מלוא (“house of Millo,” 2 Kgs 12:21) should be connected with the fortifications that surrounded the Gihon Spring—the primary water source for Bronze and Iron Age Jerusalem.

Alumni Access Available: Atla Religion Database

The Meaning of “Magdalene”: A Review of Literary Evidence

Elizabeth Schrader and Joan E. Taylor
Journal of Biblical Literature 140, no. 4 (2021): 751–73

Abstract:

While it is common today to refer to Jesus's disciple Mαρία[μ] ή Mαγδαληνή as Mary “of Magdala,” with Magdala identified as a Galilean city named Tarichaea, what do our earliest Christian sources actually indicate about the meaning of this woman's name? Examination of the Gospel of Luke, Origen, Eusebius, Macarius Magnes, and Jerome, as well as evidence in hagiography, pilgrimage, and diverse literature, reveals multiple ways that the epithet ή Mαγδαληνή can be understood. While Mary sometimes was believed to come from a place called “Magdala” or “Magdalene,” the assumption was that it was a small and obscure village, its location unspecified or unknown. Given the widespread understanding that Mary Magdalene was the sister of Martha, it could even be equated with Bethany. However, Jerome thought that the epithet was a reward for Mary's faith and actions, not something indicative of provenance: Mary “of the Tower.” No early Christian author identifies a city (Tarichaea) called “Magdala” by the Sea of Galilee, even when they knew the area well. A pilgrim site on ancient ruins, established as “Magdala” by the mid-sixth century, was visited by Christians at least into the fourteenth century, and thus the name is remembered today. In view of the earlier evidence of Origen and Jerome, however, the term ή Mαγδαληνή may be based on an underlying Aramaic word meaning “the magnified one” or “tower-ess,” and is therefore best left untranslated.

Alumni Access Available: Atla Religion Database

Kohelet – Hebrew or Hellenist? A Survey of the Debate

J. J. Kimche
The Expository Times 133, no. 4 (January 2022): 141–53

Abstract:

This essay provides a comprehensive survey of two centuries of scholarly debate regarding the extent to which Kohelet, the author of the book of Ecclesiastes, was influenced by currents of Greek philosophy and literature. This essay first considers Kohelet’s possible Hebraic, Babylonian, and Egyptian sources of influence, before moving on to address its main topic. It surveys the broad spectrum of scholarly debate on this issue, and explores the strength and plausibility of each position on this spectrum. Finally, it concludes that while no certain conclusions can be reached, the evidence seems to reject the more extreme ends of this spectrum of opinion, while at the same time underscoring the uniqueness and irreducability of Kohelet’s worldview.

Alumni Access Available: SAGE Journals

World Christianity and Religions 2022: A Complicated Relationship

Gina A. Zurlo, Todd M. Johnson, and Peter F. Crossing
International Bulletin of Mission Research 46, no. 1 (January 2022): 71-80

Abstract:

This article marks the thirty-eighth year of including statistical information on World Christianity and mission in the International Bulletin of Mission Research. This year it includes details on the growth of world religions, increasing religious diversity, and personal contact between Christians and people of other religions. The world is becoming more religious, and the world’s countries have become more religiously diverse, yet Christians have inadequate personal contact with members of other religions. Solidarity, including friendship, love, and hospitality, is posited as the way forward in addressing these trends.

Alumni Access Available: SAGE Journals

Exegetical Response: A Cost-Benefit Evaluation

C. John Collins
Sapientia, Carl F.H. Henry Center for Theological Understanding, January 11, 2022

Our own Jack Collins constructively responds to William Lane Craig’s In Quest of the Historical Adam: A Biblical and Scientific Exploration (Eerdmans, 2021). Drawing on his own expertise on the early chapters of Genesis and questions about human origins, Collins carefully evaluates Craig’s argument and offers stronger alternative approaches. Collins’ discussion focuses on “The Question of Genre” (particularly Craig’s categorization of Genesis 1-11 as “mytho-history”, which Collins argues may be well-intentioned, but is open to misunderstanding and not fully nuanced), “The Matter of the Fantastic”, “The Reading of the Fall Story in Genesis 3”, and the “Natural and Supernatural in Human Origins”. Overall, Collins is appreciative of Craig’s work and recommends it as “an imaginative and serviceable tool for our toolkits”.

Open Access

Individual and Personality Factors That Explain Selfie Behaviors

Christopher Vardeman and Harsha Gangadharbatla
First Monday 26, no. 10 (October 4, 2021)

Abstract:

Among the artifacts of the increasingly digital and social media-saturated world we live in is the rise and proliferation of selfie phenomenon. This study is designed to provide empirical evidence in support of, and to quantify the effect size of, the personality and individual-level factors frequently mentioned in literature as the drivers of selfie behaviors. Results indicate that all of the variables considered in this study — age, gender, time spent on social media, narcissism, extraversion, and impression management — predict and explain 60 percent of the variance in selfie behaviors. Implications are drawn and future avenues are discussed.

Open Access

Grazing and Gazing: Meditation and Contemplation in Puritan Spirituality

J.A. Medders
Journal of Spiritual Formation and Soul Care (January 19, 2022): 1-14

Abstract:

In the grammar of Christian spirituality, meditation and contemplation are often seen as synonyms. Is there a difference? This paper traces out the origin of contemplation, locating the practice of contemplation in Lectio Divina, reformed spirituality, and the experimental piety of the Puritans. This paper shows the differences in meditation and contemplation, and how they cooperate in the spirituality of those whose faith is seeking understanding. The clarification and retrieval of contemplation in evangelical spirituality is well served by attending to the Puritans and their understanding of how contemplation functions in the life of those who have been raised with Christ and are setting their minds on things above, where Christ is.

Alumni Access Available: SAGE Journals

Rethinking “Active Participation” after a Pandemic

Matthew Salisbury
Theology 124, no. 6 (December 1, 2021): 410-419

Abstract:

This article argues that the reimagining of Christian worship during the coronavirus pandemic beginning in 2020 calls for a consequent repositioning of the term ‘active participation’ in worship. It argues that the various gifts and capacities of a dispersed worshipping community point to kinds of participation in typical ‘in-person’ worship that are often overlooked. Reference is made to Paul’s theology of the members of the body of Christ and to the practice of music.

Alumni Access Available: SAGE Journals

The Theological Vision of Geerhardus Vos: Theological Education and Reformed Ministry

Bradley J. Bitner
Themelios 46, no. 3 (December 2021): 641–664

Abstract:

Gerhardus Vos’s lesser-known first inaugural address (1888) entailed a theological vision. Its subject was not biblical theology, but theological method and theological education for Reformed ministry. Vos first identifies cultural, theological, and curricular challenges to the kind of theological formation he thinks students need. Then he exemplifies the kind of confessional framework, theological patterns of thinking, and historical humility that he envisions as necessary for ministry that bears lasting, robust gospel fruit for the church. Vos’s vision provokes us to reconsider the shape and aims of contemporary theological education as well as the relationship between systematic and biblical theology in his theological method.

Open Access

Leviticus in Light of Christ

Roland Elliott
Themelios 46, no. 3 (December 2021): 522–533

Abstract:

Christians have long wrestled with how to read the Law in light of the work of Christ. Focusing on Leviticus, this article defends a proposal for its structure and leverages this as a starting point for reading its laws in light of Christ. The resulting approach considers laws in terms of (1) the purpose of the overarching section to which they belong and (2) how they are expressed in terms of old covenant realities. This provides the tools for nuanced consideration of the degree and manner of how these laws continue to be relevant to daily life in Christ.

Open Access

Genre-Sensitive Biblical Interpretation in 1 Peter

Jordan Atkinson
Themelios 46, no. 3 (December 2021): 608–619

Abstract:

This article argues that 1 Peter 1:10–12 contains Peter’s hermeneutic for interpreting Old Testament messianic prophecies in 1 Peter. Though the scholarly consensus is that these verses govern every use of Scripture throughout 1 Peter, an exegesis of 1 Peter 1:10–12 reveals that Peter only discusses Old Testament prophecy in these verses. In addition to quoting prophecies, though, Peter also quotes the Law and wisdom literature. The hermeneutic for the Law and wisdom literature in 1 Peter is distinct from that of prophecy and is a model for how Christians should continue to interpret biblical texts according to their genres.

Open Access

Redemptive Transformational Learning for Ministry and Theological Education, Part 1

Seth J. Nelson
Christian Education Journal 18, no. 3 (December 2021): 387-405

Abstract:

This article continues the conversation between theological education and Transformative Learning (TL) theory by proposing a Redemptive Transformational Learning paradigm. The author explores a biblical-theology of transformation across Creation, Fall, Redemption, and New Creation, reviews the development of TL from Jack Mezirow to its contemporary formulation, and offers an appreciative critique of TL. This critique orients the path forward, toward a redemptive approach to the practice of TL in theological education and church-based educational ministries.

Alumni Access Available: SAGE Journals

Economic Models of Church Life: Three ‘Nudges’ towards Better Behaviour

Stephen Bullivant
Theology 125, no. 1 (January 2022): 27-34

Abstract:

Economic ideas have long shed light on diverse spheres of social and cultural life. Religion is no exception and has spawned a large and thriving subfield. However, whereas recent decades have famously witnessed a ‘behavioural’ turn in economics – with Nobel prizes going to two pioneers of the field, Daniel Kahneman in 2002 and Richard Thaler in 2017 – there has yet to be significant work done in the ‘behavioural economics of religion’. This is a shame; there are good reasons for thinking that behavioural-economic theories and findings might be particularly well suited to illumine several areas of practical church life. In what is hopefully a light and quasi-entertaining way, this article offers (wildly speculative!) applications of behavioural economic ideas to three live topics within the sociology of religion and/or pastoral theology: the ‘empty’ church, the success of US megachurches, and church planting.

Alumni Access Available: SAGE Journals

Further Reforming a Reformed Theology of Law

David VanDrunen
Journal of Reformed Theology 15, no. 4 (December 2021): 281-303

Abstract:

Early Reformed theology of law was very similar to Thomas Aquinas’s, although it also dissented from aspects of his work. This early Reformed thinking about law came to influential expression in the Marrow of Modern Divinity. The Marrow’s theology of law focused on concerns of Reformed soteriology while continuing to resemble much of Thomas’s scheme. This revised Reformed approach was generally helpful, yet did not give enough attention to the movement of redemptive history. Therefore, this article proposes a theology of law that incorporates earlier Reformed developments but also seeks to reform them further by taking redemptive-historical considerations into fuller account.

Dead-Ends and New Directions: Abraham Kuyper and Contemporary VU Philosophers on the Creation-Evolution Debate

Jean Francesco A.L. Gomes
Journal of Reformed Theology 15, no. 4 (December 2021): 327-347

Abstract:

The aim of this article is to investigate how Abraham Kuyper and some late neo-Calvinists have addressed the doctrine of creation in light of the challenges posed by evolutionary scientific theory. I argue that most neo-Calvinists today, particularly scholars from the Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam (VU), continue Kuyper’s legacy by holding the core principles of a creationist worldview. Yet, they have taken a new direction by explaining the natural history of the earth in evolutionary terms. In my analysis, Kuyper’s heirs at the VU today offer judicious parameters to guide Christians in conversation with evolutionary science, precisely because of their high appreciation of good science and awareness of the nonnegotiable elements that make up the orthodox Christian narrative.